Emmanuel Celebrating 20th Anniversary of Founders’ Day
January 30, 2012
Emmanuel's annual college-wide celebration honoring the legacy of St. Julie Billiart and Francoise Blin de Bourdon, the founders of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur (SND), turns 20 this year. Founders' Week, sponsored by the Center for Mission & Spirituality, takes place January 29th-February 4th.
Inaugurated in February 1993 as Founders' Day, the celebration was expanded in 2009 to include a weeklong series of events. This year's celebration includes the annual Mass and Founders' Day address along with new events including a discussion among Emmanuel community members about how they live out the mission of the SND in their daily lives, and a retreat and planning day for the 1804 Society, a new organization on campus that strives to better educate the student body about the College's founding order.
Founders' Day will take place Thursday, February 2nd with a celebration of Mass in the morning followed by an address by President Sister Janet Eisner, SND on "The Mission of the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur" in the Janet M. Daley Library Lecture Hall at 12:15 p.m.
Later that night, the Class of 2012 will come together in the Fenway Room as part of 100 Days: a Founders' Day Celebration, which will reinstate the tradition of ringing the Emmanuel College Chapel bells 100 times in recognition of the number of days the senior class has left until graduation. Class officers will speak about the impact the SNDs have had on the Class of 2012 and alumni will be present to highlight ways the soon-to-be graduates can give back to the College after Commencement.
Additional highlights of the week include a screening of the award-winning documentary "They Killed Sister Dorothy," which profiles the life and murder of Sister Dorothy Stang, SND and her work on behalf of the indigenous people of Brazil and in the Amazon rainforest, a presentation from young alumni on their experiences as Notre Dame Mission volunteers/AmeriCorps, dinners and service opportunities.
Visit the College's event's calendar for more on Founders' Week.
